Issue - meetings

Contract Award - Waste and Recycling Collection and Associated Services

Meeting: 28/02/2019 - Cabinet (Item 6)

6 Contract Award - Waste and Recycling Collection and Associated Services pdf icon PDF 123 KB

Minutes:

The Lead Member for Environmental Services (including parking, flooding, housing and Performance Management) introduced the report that sought approval to award a new waste contract.

 

The Lead Member informed Cabinet that the Residents Survey showed how important the weekly bin collection was to our residents with a 88% satisfaction rating.

 

This report requested approval to award an eight year contract to the preferred bidder with a possible 8 year extension subject to satisfactory performance, so that residents will continue to receive a weekly waste and recycling collection.

 

If the recommendations were approved the council would separately undertake a procurement exercise for recycling of dry mixed recycling (DMR). The report requested delegated authority to directly award a contract for the processing of DMR to the Deputy Director Strategy and Commissioning in consultation with the Lead Member for environmental services to provide an outlet for the recycling collected in the Royal Borough.

 

The current waste and recycling collection services contract was due to end in September 2019 with a short-term extension to reduce the risks of an uncertain market and to allow time for a fuller mobilisation period which reduces the risk of disruption to residents.

 

The current waste vehicles had come to the end of their life so in the 2019-20 budget £4.5 million had been set aside for the purchase of a new modern fleet.  The Chairman mentioned that as current trucks had a life span of about eight years it made sense that the purchase of a new fleet being in the capital programme with the costs forming part of the contract. 

 

The Chairman mentioned that as this was such an important service for our residents with a high satisfaction rating that it was important to get the transition between contracts right first time, he recommended a soft launch.  The Lead Member informed that £100k had been set aside for the first year of the contract and £50k for the second year to help reduce the potential impact of the transition period as it was important to continue the current high performance.  The chairman said that as it was important to be resident focused he would recommend a small role-out to start with before going borough wide and he requested that a steering group be established to look at the transition period.

 

The Lead Member for Culture and Communities (including Resident and Business Services) informed that this was a brilliant paper and she was pleased to see addition funds being set aside for customer services to help with the transition period.

 

The Lead Member for Highways, Transport and Windsor said that as waste used to be his responsibility he was aware of how this high performing service was with only 10 or less bins not being collected each week which was an excellent service. He also said that the new fleet would have 360 degree visibility which would improve safety.

 

The Lead Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health reported that this was an excellent service and he  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6